Anon E. Mouse 
THE STORY OF SIKULUME – A Xhosa legend from South Africa 
Baba Indaba Children’s Stories – Issue 277

ISSN: 2397-9607 Issue 277In this 277th issue of the Baba Indaba’s Children’s Stories series, Baba Indaba narrates the Xhosa tale, “The Story of Sikulume.”ONCE upon a time, long, long ago in the land of the Xhosa, on Africa’s East Coast, there was once in a certain village in South Africa an old man who was very poor. He had no children, and only a few cattle. One day, when the sky was clear and the sun was bright, he sat down by the cattle-fold. While he was sitting there, he noticed some birds close by which were singing very joyfully. He listened for a while, and then he stood up to observe them better, They were very beautiful to look upon, and they sang differently from other birds.He tells the chief who interprets what he has seen as an omen. The chief then sets seven boys, including his own son, the task of catching the birds, saying that they should not return unless they have their bird with them.The boys set off on their task and that’s when things begin to happen.What happened to the boys you ask? Also, were the birds magic? And what of the Inabulele, which translates as “the one who kills”, the river monster that kills all who cross it’s path? Will any of the boys fall foul of this dreaded beast whilst on their quest?To find out, you’ll have to download and read the story for yourself.Baba Indaba is a fictitious Zulu storyteller who narrates children’s stories from around the world. Baba Indaba translates as ‘Father of Stories’.Each issue also has a ‘WHERE IN THE WORLD – LOOK IT UP’ section, where young readers are challenged to look up a place on a map somewhere in the world. The place, town or city is relevant to the story. HINT – use Google maps.33% of the profit from the sale of this book will be donated to charities.INCLUDES LINKS TO DOWNLOAD 8 FREE STORIES